Egg Roll Bowls

October 13, 2016 | | | |
Jump to Recipe
5 from 3 votes

This post may contain affiliate links. Read about my affiliate policy.

chicken-egg-roll-bowlsWhen I was at boarding school, there was an awesomely terrible Chinese delivery spot in town called China Star. I’m pretty sure 99% of their business came from Taft students, and since I crushed 2-3 white carton meals a week my sophomore year, I’m gonna go out on a limb and say that I may have been one of their top customers. At the time, I was quite proud of this fact.

In my defense, my China Star fetish was largely a result of limited dining options. I could either eat three meals a day in the dining hall, or I could order from the few local restaurants that delivered to campus. The dining hall wasn’t terrible per say, but I was a relatively picky eater, and there were only so many bowls of cereal and plain penne with Parmesan that my teenage palate could handle. I needed pizza, Thanksgiving paninis, and large quantities of MSG to survive/fill out my sexy low-rise corduroys. JV Volleyball and winter Jazzercise burned a ton of cals!

skinnytaste-egg-roll-bowls-2When it came to my China Star order, I went ham, especially when I was going splitsies with my roommate. (Hi, Fif!) Chicken and broccoli and/or sesame chicken was a given, plus the occasional carton of Lo Mein, and a casual side of egg rolls. Dear God, I loved those egg rolls. Crispy, crunchy nuggets with a magical mystery filling that my 15-year-old self never gave much thought to. (Which was probably for the best.)

Needless to say, I was quite distressed when China Star delivery was unceremoniously banned by Taft’s administration my junior year (for alleged reckless driving on school property/shoving menus under every student’s door multiple times a night), but the forced delivery hiatus turned out to be a blessing in disguise. It was only when I eliminated tri-weekly China Star dinners that I realized how they’d made me feel, and after just a few weeks sans the Star, I noticed that my flared jeans were (slightly) less snug, and I didn’t need to spend half an hour rolling around on the floor “to digest” before I could comfortably tackle my homework. Hallelujah!

Sidenote: Writing this post has made me realize that I was essentially Logan as a teenager…

skinnytaste-egg-roll-bowls-3Anyhoo, I don’t eat as many egg rolls in my adult life, but that’s not to say I don’t miss them. In fact, every time I see egg rolls on a menu, my mouth waters a little bit. (And I hear Counting Crows music in the background. Ahhhh 2003.) So, you can imagine how pumped I was when I saw a recipe for Egg Roll Bowls in my friend Gina’s glorious new book Skinnytaste Fast and Slow...

skinnytaste-egg-roll-bowls-4Before we get into the delicious details of these bowls, I just want to go on record with the following: Gina is a genius. Another friend once called her “the Ina of the blog world,” and I wholeheartedly agree. All of her creative and impeccably tested recipes are foolproof, and better still, they’re accessible and healthy. Her latest book is a mix of quickie feasts (i.e. recipes ready in less than 30 minutes) and slow-cooker favorites—Fast and Slow, get it?—and each beautifully photographed meal is more drool-worthy than the last. Plus, the book has some newfangled spine/binding that allows its pages to lie completely flat no matter where you open it. MAGIC. Please get yourself a copy, stat.

skinnytaste-egg-roll-bowls-5Moving on to bowl specifics! These savory, umami-flavored bowls literally taste like inside of an egg roll, and I could not be more thrilled to have them in my regular rotation. The best part? Thanks to their veggie-heavy ingredient list, they’re practically bursting with health benefits. Cabbage in particular is loaded with antioxidants and anti-inflammatory nutrients, and it’s great for digestion, and this recipe is a delicious way take down a solid serving of the cruciferous wonder. Virtual chest bump.

Gina uses ground pork in her bowls, but I subbed ground chicken, which was delightful. (You could easily use 93% lean ground turkey as well.) I also doubled down on the ginger for extra kick and added a sprinkling of chopped peanuts for crunch, but you should obviously do you when it comes to preparing your bowls. This one skillet recipe comes together in about 20 minutes, so it’s a killer option for busy weeknights, and since leftovers keep extremely well, sassy desk lunch leftovers are something to be psyched about.

Get on it, friends.

p.s. This recipe is Dude Diet-friendly, paleo, and gluten-free if you use tamari instead of soy sauce. Whooop.

Egg Roll Bowls: (Serves 2)

skinnytaste-egg-roll-bowls-7Ingredients:
7 ounces ground pork (Feel free to sub ground chicken like I did or 93% lean ground turkey.)
3 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
½ small onion, chopped
2 garlic cloves, minced
½-1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger (depending on your ginger love)
2½ cups finely sliced napa or green cabbage
2 cups finely sliced baby bok choy
½ cup shredded carrots
2½ ounces sliced shiitake mushrooms
1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil
1-2 medium scallions, sliced, for garnish
2 tablespoons chopped peanuts (optional)

Preparing your Egg Roll Bowls:

-Set a large nonstick skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the pork and 1 tablespoon of the soy sauce and cook, using a wooden spoon to break the meat into small pieces as it browns, about 3 minutes.

chicken-egg-roll-bowls-step-1-Add the onion, garlic, and ginger and cook stirring, until the vegetables are soft, 2 to 3 minutes.

chicken-egg-roll-bowls-step-2-Add the cabbage, bok choy, carrots, and mushrooms. Pour in the remaining 2 tablespoons soy sauce, the rice wine, and sesame oil. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage and bok choy are wilted but still crunchy, 3 to 4 minutes.

chicken-egg-roll-bowls-step-3-Serve hot, garnished with scallions and chopped peanuts (if using).

skinnytaste-egg-roll-bowls-6

Egg Roll Bowls

Author – Serena Wolf
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Yields: 2 servings

Ingredients

  • 7 ounces ground pork Feel free to sub ground chicken like I did or 93% lean ground turkey.
  • 3 tablespoons reduced-sodium soy sauce
  • ½ small onion chopped
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • ½-1 teaspoon grated fresh ginger depending on your ginger love
  • cups finely sliced napa or green cabbage
  • 2 cups finely sliced baby bok choy
  • ½ cup shredded carrots
  • ounces sliced shiitake mushrooms
  • 1 tablespoon Chinese rice wine or dry sherry
  • ½ teaspoon toasted sesame oil
  • 1-2 medium scallions sliced, for garnish
  • 2 tablespoons chopped peanuts optional

Instructions

  • Set a large nonstick skillet or wok over medium-high heat. Add the pork and 1 tablespoon of the soy sauce and cook, using a wooden spoon to break the meat into small pieces as it browns, about 3 minutes.
  • Add the onion, garlic, and ginger and cook stirring, until the vegetables are soft, 2 to 3 minutes.
  • Add the cabbage, bok choy, carrots, and mushrooms. Pour in the remaining 2 tablespoons soy sauce, the rice wine, and sesame oil. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the cabbage and bok choy are wilted but still crunchy, 3 to 4 minutes. Serve hot, garnished with scallions and peanuts (if using).

Shop this post

Never miss a post!

Get new recipes and lifestyle tips delivered straight to your inbox.

9 Comments

  1. Rebecca on February 17, 2022 at 11:04 pm

    5 stars
    I’ve made this recipe multiple times and the kids and hubby love it!! It’s really tasty and I love how full of veggies it is!! I usually skip the mushrooms because the kids aren’t a fan, but it’s still fabulous!!

  2. jamesfedrick on November 12, 2020 at 4:14 pm

    Thanks on your marvelous posting! I certainly enjoyed reading it, you might be a great author. I will remember to bookmark your blog and definitely will come back very soon. there is also something I want to note you about this it could help especially on your blogging journey.

  3. Jenny on August 26, 2020 at 1:54 am

    These are SO good!

  4. Susan Stone on September 27, 2017 at 12:57 pm

    These bowls sound great! In my younger years I went through a stage where I was primarily cooking Chinese food. I probably got to like it because my mother actually got take out from a Chinese take out place when I was a teenager. The only thing that persuaded her to do that was that the place was owned by the parents of one of my sister’s classmates. These days I tend to prefer Southeast Asian cuisines over Chinese, but I like the idea of these bowls. I just might have to try them.

  5. Kathy on June 16, 2017 at 11:00 pm

    I made these this week with the pork. I left out the peanuts but put crispy chow mein noodles on top for some crunchiness.This was sooo good, totally tastes like the inside of an eggroll. I had one serving left over, so i wisked together 8 eggs, and divided the eggs and left over egg roll bowl to some cup cake tins, baked and now I have 4 servings of eggy egg roll cups. (Well, 3 servings left, at 1 one…just to test it out, right?)

  6. Kay Battista on January 24, 2017 at 9:26 am

    so quick and delicious! This will be a staple for sassy desk lunches.

    • Serena Wolf on January 25, 2017 at 1:51 pm

      YES! Love how speedy these are. Happy sassy desk lunching, girl.

  7. Stephanie McCarrell on January 10, 2017 at 8:25 am

    I doubled the recipe (and simplified a bit) using 1 lb of ground chicken and 16 oz of pre-shredded coleslaw mix and it was so good! I’m sure including the bok choy would be great, but you can’t beat the pre-shredded cabbage mix for simplicity 🙂 Really yummy and quick! Will definitely make this again!

  8. Anna Petrash on October 21, 2016 at 5:29 pm

    I just made this and loved it!!!

Leave a Comment


Rate this recipe